Top Ten States Receiving Syrians Refugees

For the first quarter of fiscal year 2017.
The ratio of cases to individuals is roughly 1:4.
The percentage Muslims in the current total of 2,671 individuals placed in the United States is 98%.



Sourced from Refugee Resettlement Watch.

Trump was Right to Try to Stop Obama from Tying his Hands on Israel

Our current President is a bad person.
Trump was Right to Try to Stop Obama from Tying his Hands on Israel
I think it is fair to characterize the Democrat Party as anti-Zionist. There is little evidence of action to refute that claim. POTUs tried sway the last Israeli election, major networks turned a blind eye. The man may be a Christian as he claims, but there is no doubt about where his sympathies lie.

In Need of a Vent

There was a man from Kent,
who had a penis so long it bent,
it was so much trouble,
that he kept it double,
and instead of coming he went.

Ann-Margret Olsson

I did not know she was from Sweden.
From the picture, you can't tell if she's going to the right or to the left.

Short Yet Unimportant

Congress.org presents MEGAVOTE for November 22, 2016 and Georgia's 13th Congressional District:

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Oil and Gas Royalties
• House: "Midnight" Rules
• House: Iranian Aircraft Purchases 

Recent Senate Votes:
Oil and Gas Royalties Vote Rejected (51-47, 2 Not Voting)
The Senate voted on the McConnell motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the bill that would establish revenue sharing for states involved in energy production from onshore and offshore areas leased by the government. It also would incorporate revenues generated by offshore wind energy production projects. Sixty votes were needed to invoke cloture and end debate.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

A vote against stopping the discussion on how to share, of all thing, the sharing of revenue from wind. For me, the mind is drafting to Don Quixote, tilting at windmills, because this Congressional content is about as relevant as a fart in church.

Recent House Votes:
"Midnight" Rules Vote Passed (240-179, 15 Not Voting)
The bill would permit a new Congress to use the procedures under the Congressional Review Act to disapprove, en bloc, multiple regulations issued by a president in his final year in office rather than just a single regulation at a time for rules issued during the final 60 session days of the previous Congress.
Rep. David Scott voted NO

The House Republicans are cuing up the latest Executive orders for repeal.  The vote by my pipsqueak Democratic Congressman is hardly surprising.

Iranian Aircraft Purchases Vote Passed (243-174, 17 Not Voting)
The measure, which combines two separately reported bills, would prohibit the Export-Import Bank from providing any export financing that would benefit the government of Iran or Iranian entities, and it would prohibit the Treasury Department from authorizing transactions by U.S. financial institutions to finance the export or re-export of commercial passenger aircraft to Iran. Under the measure, any prior Treasury authorizations for U.S. financing of commercial aircraft sales to Iran would be retroactively revoked.
Rep. David Scott voted NO

The House of Representatives wants to make it as difficult as possible for the Iranians to purchase commercial aircraft. David Scott voted against that precaution. In thinking about the application of the vote, it may be that he is trying to protect local industry. But I doubt it.

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What's Under Your Tree?

Ripped off of Grouchy Old Cripple.

Flinty Water

Congress.org presents MEGAVOTE, posted on December 13, 2016 and for Georgia's 13th Congressional District.

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Medical Research and Associated Activities
• Senate: Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization Conference Report
• Senate: Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations
• Senate: Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations
• Senate: Water Infrastructure Conference Report
• Senate: Water Infrastructure Conference Report
• House: International Insurance Standards
• House: Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations
• House: Water Infrastructure Conference Report

The 114th Congress has come to a close for anticipated legislative business. The 115th Congress will convene on Tuesday, January 3, 2017.

Recent Senate Votes

Medical Research and Associated Activities Vote Agreed to (94-5, 1 Not Voting)
The Senate agreed to the motion to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to the bill that would reauthorize the National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration, and would modify the FDA's drug and medical device review and approval process to accelerate the approval and distribution of new drugs and devices. The measure would create three dedicated offset funds within the Treasury into which $6.3 billion would be transferred over 10 years, through 2026. The accounts would include $4.8 billion for NIH medical research, $500 million for FDA approval and review modification and $1 billion for opioid addiction treatment and response. Funding for the accounts would not count against annual discretionary budget caps. Within the NIH funding, $1.8 billion would be for cancer therapy and test development, $1.5 would be for brain-related research and $1.5 billion would be for medical treatments related to genetic characteristics. The measure would also expand the Health and Human Services Department's oversight of mental health issues, would modify the Medicare program for hospitals, and would allow small employers to provide certain reimbursement plans for employees to purchase their own health insurance. The House replaced the original text of HR 34 with an amendment that consisted of the medical research and expedited drug approval legislative provisions.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

I am more interested in what is to come. A government where Democrats and Republicans alike are inclined toward increasing government. Soon the Republicans will have complete control of all but the SCOTUS. Will they keep their promises to ditch ACA? I sincerely doubt it.

Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization Conference Report Vote Agreed to (92-7, 1 Not Voting)

The Senate adopted the conference report on the bill that would authorize $611.2 billion for defense programs in fiscal 2017, including $59.5 billion for overseas operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. It would authorize $222.4 billion for operations and maintenance; $139.6 billion for military personnel; $7.9 billion for military construction and family housing; $10 billion for ballistic-missile defense; and $33.4 billion for defense health care programs, including $334 million from the overseas operations account. It would prohibit the use of funds for a new round of base closures. The bill would authorize a 2.1 percent pay raise for military personnel. It would elevate U.S. Cyber Command to an independent major command within the Defense Department. It would prohibit detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, from being transferred to U.S. soil, and would prohibit the closing of the main base and detention facility at Guantanamo. It would extend, through fiscal 2017, the authority for several bonus and special payments for military members.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

This pretty much always passes because this is where most of the spending directed at industry is applied. The only time that one or the other party objects is when there is some competing spending stream that has gathered steam.

Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations Vote Agreed to (61-38, 1 Not Voting)
The Senate agreed to the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to the original bill that would provide funding for federal government operations until April 28, 2017, at an annualized rate of $1.070 trillion. The measure would provide $170 million for repairs to the water system in Flint, Mich., $872 million for medical research, and $45 million for an extension, through April 30, 2017, of health benefits for retired coal miners. The measure would include $10.1 billion in supplemental Overseas Contingency Operations funds for the Defense Department and certain other security-related accounts. It would include $4.1 billion in natural disaster funding to address damage caused by hurricane and flooding events in 2016. The measure would also provide for expedited Senate consideration of legislation to waive the requirement that a former member of the armed forces cannot become secretary of Defense until seven years have lapsed since the person left active duty.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

Votes about talking, boring.

Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations Vote Agreed to (63-36, 1 Not Voting)
The Senate agreed to the motion to concur in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to the original bill that would provide funding for federal government operations until April 28, 2017, at an annualized rate of $1.070 trillion. The measure would provide $170 million for repairs to the water system in Flint, Mich., $872 million for medical research, and $45 million for an extension, through April 30, 2017, of health benefits for retired coal miners. The measure would include $10.1 billion in supplemental Overseas Contingency Operations funds for the Defense Department and certain other security-related accounts. It would include $4.1 billion in natural disaster funding to address damage caused by hurricane and flooding events in 2016. The measure would also provide for expedited Senate consideration of legislation to waive the requirement that a former member of the armed forces cannot become secretary of Defense until seven years have lapsed since the person left active duty.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted NO

Votes about agreement, boring.

Water Infrastructure Conference Report Vote Agreed to (69-30, 1 Not Voting)
The Senate agreed to the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to concur in the House amendment to the bill that would authorize new water projects for construction by the Army Corps of Engineers, allow for the Corps to conduct feasibility studies for additional projects and deauthorize certain existing projects. It also would modify numerous Corps water resources authorities and seek to ensure that Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund spending levels are sustained.
It would authorize $170 million in aid to Flint, Mich., to repair its lead-contaminated drinking water system, including $100 million to replace its water pipes and other infrastructure, and it would establish several new programs to promote safe drinking water and reduce any concentrations of lead, as well as to test for lead in schools and child care centers. 
The measure also would take several actions to help California deal with its years-long drought, including by requiring that more northern water be diverted south to drought-stricken areas.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

Why is the Federal government working to solve problems that the state government has created. Let California succeed, future political seasons will be much more exciting.

Water Infrastructure Conference Report Vote Agreed to (78-21, 1 Not Voting)

The Senate agreed to the motion to concur in the House amendment to the bill that would authorize new water projects for construction by the Army Corps of Engineers, allow for the Corps to conduct feasibility studies for additional projects and deauthorize certain existing projects. It also would modify numerous Corps water resources authorities and seek to ensure that Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund spending levels are sustained.
It would authorize $170 million in aid to Flint, Mich., to repair its lead-contaminated drinking water system, including $100 million to replace its water pipes and other infrastructure, and it would establish several new programs to promote safe drinking water and reduce any concentrations of lead, as well as to test for lead in schools and child care centers.
The measure also would take several actions to help California deal with its years-long drought, including by requiring that more northern water be diverted south to drought-stricken areas.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

Votes about reports, boring.

Recent House Votes
International Insurance Standards Vote Passed (239-170, 24 Not Voting)
The House passed a bill that would prohibit the United States from agreeing to any proposed international insurance standards until the government had publicly published the proposal, and would prohibit the adoption of any international insurance capital standards until the Federal Reserve had issued domestic capital standards for insurance companies. The measure also would specify objectives for U.S. officials negotiating international insurance standards, and would reduce, from $50 million to $43 million, the maximum amount of money that the Securities and Exchange Commission could deposit into its reserve fund during fiscal 2017.
Rep. David Scott voted NO

David Scott voted against a proposal that bars the executive from making "treaties" without Congressional oversight. This I know is not a technically accurate comment, but in general, I am against any unchecked agreement with global standards.

Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations Vote Passed (326-96, 11 Not Voting)

The House agreed to concur in the Senate amendment with an additional amendment that would provide funding for federal government operations until April 28, 2017, at an annualized rate of $1.070 trillion. The measure would provide $170 million for repairs to the water system in Flint, Mich., $872 million for medical research, and $45 million for an extension, through April 30, 2017, of health benefits for retired coal miners. The measure would include $10.1 billion in supplemental Overseas Contingency Operations funds for the Defense Department and certain other security-related accounts. It would include $4.1 billion in natural disaster funding to address damage caused by hurricane and flooding events in 2016. The measure would also provide for expedited Senate consideration of legislation to waive the requirement that a former member of the armed forces cannot become secretary of Defense until seven years have lapsed since the person left active duty. The House replaced the amended text of HR 2028 with an amendment that consisted of the continuing appropriations legislative provisions.

Rep. David Scott voted YES

Voting to continue deficit spending, infuriating.

Water Infrastructure Conference Report Vote Passed (360-61, 12 Not Voting)
The House passed a measure that would authorize new water projects for construction by the Army Corps of Engineers, allow for the Corps to conduct feasibility studies for additional projects and deauthorize certain existing projects. It also would modify numerous Corps water resources authorities and seek to ensure that Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund spending levels are sustained.
It would authorize $170 million in aid to Flint, Mich., to repair its lead-contaminated drinking water system, including $100 million to replace its water pipes and other infrastructure, and it would establish several new programs to promote safe drinking water and reduce any concentrations of lead, as well as to test for lead in schools and child care centers.
The measure also would take several actions to help California deal with its years-long drought, including by requiring that more northern water be diverted south to drought-stricken areas.
The House replaced the original text of S 612 with an amendment that consisted of the water infrastructure legislative provisions.
Rep. David Scott voted YES

Votes to spend money on problems that were already paid for to be corrected. Not the Fed's fault I know, but municipalities like Flint and New Orleans are famous for spending money intended for "infastructure" on parks and useless shit like that.

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Video Conferencing, Just in the Nick of Time

Congress.org presents MEGAVOTE, posted on December 5, 2016 and for Georgia's 13th Congressional District.

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Health Care Videoconferencing – Passage
• House: Medical Research and Associated Activities - Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendment with an Additional House Amendment
• House: Additional Committee Funding – Agreeing to Resolution
• House: Banking Regulations – Passage
• House: Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization - Conference Report

Upcoming Congressional Bills

• Senate: Medical Research and Associated Activities
• Senate: Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization
• Senate: Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal 2017
• Senate: Water Projects
• House: International Insurance Standards
• House: Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal 2017
• House: Water Projects

Recent Senate Votes

Health Care Videoconferencing – Passage Vote Passed (97-0, 3 Not Voting)

The Senate passed the bill that would require the Health and Human Services secretary to examine distance education models that use videoconferencing to connect medical specialists with multiple other health care professionals. The examination also would need to look at the models' impacts on: addressing chronic disease, mental disorders, palliative care and other types of care; health care workforce issues; implementing public health programs; and health care services in rural and underserved communities. The secretary would be required to submit a report to Congress based on this examination.
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES

It is curious to see a government need to have a vote on a work practice. Sadly, it must be evidence that existing rules prevent dynamic change in government and more importantly the business that the y have under their thumb. This was so simple that the Senators were able to be unanimous in approval. More impressive would be another unanimous vote by Congress to get the heck out of the way of comon sense. 

Recent House Votes

Medical Research and Associated Activities - Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendment with an Additional House Amendment Vote Passed (392-26, 16 Not Voting)
The House passed a bill that would reauthorize the National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration, and would modify the FDA's drug and medical device review and approval process to accelerate the approval and distribution of new drugs and devices. The measure would create three dedicated offset funds within the Treasury into which $6.3 billion would be transferred over 10 years, through 2026. The accounts would include $4.8 billion for NIH medical research, $500 million for FDA approval and review modification and $1 billion for opioid addiction treatment and response. Funding for the accounts would not count against annual discretionary budget caps. Within the NIH funding, $1.8 billion would be for cancer therapy and test development, $1.5 would be for brain-related research and $1.5 billion would be for medical treatments related to genetic characteristics. The measure would also expand the Health and Human Services Department's oversight of mental health issues, would modify the Medicare program for hospitals, and would allow small employers to provide certain reimbursement plans for employees to purchase their own health insurance. The House replaced the original text of HR 34 with an amendment that consisted of the medical research and expedited drug approval legislative provisions.
Rep. David Scott voted YES

Fast tracking medicine approvals. Again , this is government, trying to simplify the mess that government created.

Additional Committee Funding – Agreeing to Resolution Vote Passed (234-181, 19 Not Voting)

The House agreed to the resolution that would allow the House Energy and Commerce Committee to spend an additional $800,000 in 2016 to cover expenses incurred by the committee's select panel investigating alleged sales of fetal tissue.
Rep. David Scott voted NO

If I understand correctly, my Congressman just voted not to approve of money budget that is already spent. Good thing that the Republicans set the vote correctly, otherwise all that money spent trying to prove something the press already exposed might have been wasted.

Banking Regulations – Passage Vote Passed (254-161, 19 Not Voting)

The House passed the bill that would modify the 2010 financial regulatory overhaul law to eliminate the requirement that the Federal Reserve automatically review bank holding companies with assets greater than $50 billion. The measure would authorize the Financial Stability Oversight Council to require enhanced Federal Reserve supervision and regulation of any bank holding company based on the FSOC's determination of the individual institution's riskiness.
Rep. David Scott voted YES

My Congressman probably gets large campaign donations from banking institutions. Generally I am for less supervision of any business by government, for banking the same. The problem is that where the regulations originate is usually i the industry, that means some poor bank startup has no influence over the rules created. Rules that certainly favor the players that are established, and can lead to quasi-monopolistic marketplace. 

Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization - Conference Report Vote Passed (375-34, 25 Not Voting)

The House adopted the conference report on the bill that would authorize $611.2 billion for defense programs in fiscal 2017, including $59.5 billion for overseas operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. It would authorize $222.4 billion for operations and maintenance; $139.6 billion for military personnel; $7.9 billion for military construction and family housing; $10 billion for ballistic-missile defense; and $33.4 billion for defense health care programs, including $334 million from the overseas operations account. It would prohibit the use of funds for a new round of base closures. The bill would authorize a 2.1 percent pay raise for military personnel. It would elevate U.S. Cyber Command to an independent major command within the Defense Department. It would prohibit detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, from being transferred to U.S. soil, and would prohibit the closing of the main base and detention facility at Guantanamo. It would extend, through fiscal 2017, the authority for several bonus and special payments for military members.
Rep. David Scott voted YES

David Scott has been alright with me in terms of defense postures.

Upcoming Votes
Medical Research and Associated Activities 
HR34 The Senate will vote on a bill that would reauthorize the National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration, and would modify the FDA's drug and medical device review and approval process to accelerate the approval and distribution of new drugs and devices. The measure would create three dedicated offset funds within the Treasury into which $6.3 billion would be transferred over 10 years, through 2026. The accounts would include $4.8 billion for NIH medical research, $500 million for FDA approval and review modification and $1 billion for opioid addiction treatment and response. Funding for the accounts would not count against annual discretionary budget caps. Within the NIH funding, $1.8 billion would be for cancer therapy and test development, $1.5 would be for brain-related research and $1.5 billion would be for medical treatments related to genetic characteristics. The measure would also expand the Health and Human Services Department's oversight of mental health issues, would modify the Medicare program for hospitals, and would allow small employers to provide certain reimbursement plans for employees to purchase their own health insurance. The House replaced the original text of HR 34 with an amendment that consisted of the medical research and expedited drug approval legislative provisions.

Fiscal 2017 Defense Authorization - S2943
The Senate will vote on the conference report to the bill that would authorize $611.2 billion for defense programs in fiscal 2017, including $59.5 billion for overseas operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. It would authorize $222.4 billion for operations and maintenance; $139.6 billion for military personnel; $7.9 billion for military construction and family housing; $10 billion for ballistic-missile defense; and $33.5 billion for defense health care programs, including $374 million from the overseas operations account. It would prohibit the use of funds for a new round of base closures. The bill would authorize a 2.1 percent pay raise for military personnel. It would elevate U.S. Cyber Command to an independent major command within the Defense Department. It would prohibit detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, from being transferred to U.S. soil, and would prohibit the closing of the main base and detention facility at Guantanamo. It would extend, through fiscal 2017, the authority for several bonus and special payments for military members.

Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal 2017 
The Senate will consider legislation that would extend current stopgap government spending until sometime after March 2017. The current continuing resolution expires on Dec. 9.

Water Projects - S612

The House will likely take up the conference report on water resources development legislation that would authorize new water projects for construction by the Army Corps of Engineers. The measure has also been at the center of negotiations to provide aid to Flint, Mich., whose drinking water system has been contaminated by lead. The water resources bill is expected to include at least an authorization for that aid. The House replaced the original text of S 612 with an amendment that consisted of the water resource development legislative provisions.

The new President has promised to make the Detroit situation right, but things like water projects are never resolved quickly and always costs multiples of the amounts estimated.

International Insurance Standards - HR5143
The House will vote on a bill that would prohibit the United States from agreeing to any international insurance standards unless the government first publicly publishes the proposal, seeks public comment and reports to Congress on the impact of those standards on U.S. markets and consumers. It also would prohibit the adoption of any international insurance capital standards until after the Federal Reserve issues domestic capital standards for insurance companies.

Government has been largely responsible for restricting insurance competition i the United States and that alone is significant to the spiraling cost of health care. The EU models seems to work pretty well on a basic level if you are willing to overlook the lack of service availability issues that arise when doctors and nurses spurn the marketplace. Government involved in insurance, other than fraud, is bad.

Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal 2017 
The House will consider legislation that would extend current stopgap government spending until sometime after March 2017. The current continuing resolution expires on Dec. 9.

Who thinks we will achieve an approved budget in the next two years, not me.

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Change the Letter

A gift from a schoolmate. Doubt that this is from a real Washington Post article, but certainly it is fun.  My favorite is the first number eight.
The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational once again invited readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.
Here are the winners:

1. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period of time.
2. Ignoranus: A person who's both stupid and an asshole.
3. Intaxicaton: Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.
4. Reintarnation: Coming back to life as a hillbilly.
5. Bozone ( n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozonelayer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future. 
6. Foreploy: Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid. 
7. Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high 
8. Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.
9. Inoculatte: To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
10. Osteopornosis: A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)
11. Karmageddon: It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.
12. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.
13. Glibido: All talk and no action. 
14. Dopeler Effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly. 
15. ArachnolepticFit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.
16. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.
17. Caterpallor ( n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you're eating.

The Washington Post has also published the winning submissions to its yearly contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words.

  

And the winners are:   

1. 1. Coffee, n. The person upon whom one coughs. 
2. Flabbergasted, adj. Appalled by discovering how much weight one has gained. 
3. Abdicate, v. To give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade, v. To attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly, adj. Impotent. 
6. Negligent, adj. Absentmindedly answering the door when wearing only a nightgown.
7. Lymph, v. To walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle, n. Olive-flavored mouthwash.
9. Flatulence, n. Emergency vehicle that picks up someone who has been run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash, n. A rapidly receding hairline.
11. Testicle, n. A humorous question on an exam. 
12. Rectitude, n. The formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists. 
13. Pokemon, n. A Rastafarian proctologist. 
14. Oyster, n. A person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms. 
15. Frisbeetarianism, n. The belief that, after death, the soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.
16. Circumvent, n. An opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.

Will Trump Defy McCain & Marco?

Patrick Buchanan discusses posturing by Senators who claim to have more influence than elections and primaries reflect. While it hasn't been verbalized, these Republican fixtures favor Senators being names as Secretary of State, and find it hard to imagine a different skill set being useful to the work.
Will Trump Defy McCain & Marco? - Rasmussen Reports™
As for Rubio's characterization that Tillerson is a "friend of Putin", they may have become friends while doing business, but I have little doubt that the Exxon chief put business first. Trump should defy the loser Senators if only to detour State's path of approaching international issues as the benevolent pussy.

Nine More Important Facts To Remember As We Grow Older

#9  Death is the number 1 killer in the world.
 
#8  Life is sexually transmitted.
 
#7  Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
 
#6   Men have 2 motivations: hunger and hanky panky, and they can't tell them apart. If you see a gleam in his eyes, make him a sandwich.
 
#5  Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day. Teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks, months, maybe years.
 
#4  Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in the hospital, dying of nothing.
 
#3  All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.
 
#2  In the 60's, people took LSD to make the world weird. Now the world is weird, and people take Prozac to make it normal.
 
#1  Life is like a jar of jalapeno peppers. What you do today may be a burning issue tomorrow. 
 
Please share this wisdom with others while I go to the bathroom.

Queens Riddle

President Obama: "Your Majesty, how do you run such an efficient government? Are there any tips you can give me?”

Queen Elizabeth: “Well, the most important thing is to surround yourself with intelligent people.”

President Obama, while frowning: “But how do I know if the people around me are really intelligent?”

Queen Elizabeth, while sipping of champagne: “Oh, that’s easy; you just ask them to answer an intelligent riddle, watch.”

The Queen pushed a button on her intercom: “Please send Tony Blair in here, would you?”

Tony Blair walked into the room and said, “Yes, your Majesty?"

The Queen smiled and said: “Answer me this please, Tony. Your mother and father have a child. It is not your brother, and it is not your sister. Who is it?”

Without pausing for a moment, Tony Blair answered: ”That would be me.”

“Yes! Very good.” said the Queen.

President Obama went back home to ask Joe Biden the same question.

“Joe, answer this for me. Your mother and your father have a child. It’s not your brother and it’s not your sister. Who is it?"

“I’m not sure,” said Biden, “let me get back to you on that one.”

The Vice President asked Hillary Clinton and all of his advisers, but none could give him an answer.

Frustrated, Biden went off for lunch at Trump Towers a day or so later and was greeted politely by Trump.

Biden asked, “Hey, Donald, see if you can answer this question. Your mother and father have a child, and it’s not your brother or your sister. Who is it?”

Trump answered: “That’s easy; it’s me!”

Biden smiled, and said: “Good answer, Donald!”

Biden then went back to speak with President Obama.

“Say, I did some research, and I have the answer to that riddle. “It’s Donald Trump!”

Obama got up, stomped over to Biden, and angrily yelled into his face, “NO, you idiot! It’s Tony Blair!”

Does Immigration Mean The End Of Western Civilization?

Does Immigration Mean The End Of Western Civilization?: A 40 year-old French novel reads as its been ripped from the headlines as EU leaders fail to grasp the true nature of Europe's immigration crisis.

This is a great book, required reading.

Tea-Shirt

Received this photo about a week before the election.

A good sign.

The Millennial Women In My Family

Are all exploring the Chicken Little syndrome.

Thank heavens my bride has got her head screwed on correctly.

Hillary Clinton was never going to save the world.

Donald Trump was never as evil as portrayed.

My U-verse went out at 2:00 AM on Wednesday morning, so this was the happy message of confirmation that I went to sleep dreaming of. 

Now all I have to do is practice patience while immature 20 somethings pontificate to adults with actual life experience.

Fighting for America

Dennis Prager has started this wonderful series of YouTube videos.
This is a great talk about how liberalism fits into American society.



Enjoyed the paraphrase of the Russian Communists...

We know what the future is, it's the past that keeps changing.

Open Container

Undressed and carrying an open container; it seems almost redundant.

Drunk, Naked Guy Searching For Sex Partner Instead Ends Up Behind Bars: 

Joshua Ivy, eager to for some sex, got undressed in the parking lot and started banging on doors.
One of the folks inside called the police. It's more difficult for men, if a woman did this, she'd probably find satisfaction on the first or second knock.

Muhammad Was A Feminist

Huh?
A couple of days ago, I downloaded the Huffington Post application to a new iPhone, a feeble attempt at making myself aware of what the other point of view has to say.  After studying the content the application was quickly removed.
Now we learn of this article via Breitbart that draws attention to a ludicrous statement made by the the Huffington Post.

Muhammad Was A Feminist

A statement, as title of the article, that is contrary to the portrayals seen in western media. When I read such a statement, my first presumption is that author is attempting to draw the reader in with a statement of political incorrectness. Breitbart describes the conceptual statement as "legerdemain" which I had to look up and is a noun defined as...

pronounced: lejərdəˈmān

defined:  skillful use of one's hands when performing conjuring tricks.

synonyms:  sleight of hand, conjuring, magic, wizardry, deception, trickery, cunning, artfulness, craftiness, chicanery, skulduggery, deceit, deception, artifice

Excerpts from Banafsheh Sayyad's article follow with comments

The prophet Muhammad would be appalled by how current Islamic Fundamentalists are treating women under their control. This suppression is done in the name of Islamic Law, known as Sharia. But the current suppression of women is shaped by cultural and history. It has little basis in the Quran and it is certainly not consistent with anything we know about what Muhammad taught or how he treated women. Of all the founders of the great religions - Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Islam and Judaism — Muhammad was easily the most radical and empowering in his treatment of women. Arguably he was history’s first feminist.

An opening salvo, declarative statement that will be supported by equally obsurd examples.

This is of critical importance because if there is one single thing that Arabs and Muslims could do to reform and re-vitalize their crisis ridden cultures, it would be to liberate their women and provide them with the full rights women are enjoying in more and more countries around the world. Women’s equality is key to a real Arab Spring.

There is certainly more than one thing that can be done, but as a statement of the need for eqaulity of Islamic womento Islamic men, fine.

Among the founders of the great religions, Confucius barely mentioned women at all and assumed in all his teachings that they we subordinate to men within a patriarchal order. Buddha taught that women could become enlightened but had to be pressured three times before allowing women to become nuns, and then only on the condition, as he put it, that the highest nun would be lower than the lowest monk. In the Gospel accounts, Jesus did not explicitly comment on the status of women, although he did associate with women of ill repute and with non Jewish women. Moses was thoroughly patriarchal and there is virtually nothing in the Torah that indicates specific concern about women’s rights.

Is this an argument that the absence of statements by religious icons is proof of a discriminatory prediliction? In all cases these writings are transcriptions of what the leaders had said, thereby imbibed with the writing styles and cultures of that time. 

Muhammad was fundamentally different. He both explicitly taught the radical equality of women and men as a fundamental tenet of true spirituality, and he took numerous concrete measures to profoundly improve the status and role of women in Arabia during his own lifetime. Muhammad was sensitized to the plight of women because he was born poor and orphaned at a very early age. He was also illiterate. He knew as few did what poverty and social exclusion meant.

Please give us examples this teaching of of the concept of equality. This is a statement of fact without support.

Confucius was born into the gentry scholar class of ancient China. Buddha was born a wealthy prince in Nepal. Jesus was born the son of a carpenter with royal lineage and within a tightly knit Jewish community in Palestine. Moses was born into a Hebrew family and raised in the palace of the Pharaoh of Egypt. Muhammad had none of these advantages. Thus while other religious leaders seemed strangely silent about the oppression of women, Muhammad dramatically raised the status of women as a matter of religious conviction and state policy. Consider the following:

The lineage of Confucius, I cannot speak for, but the Moses was a slave, and Jesus lived in a conquered country ruled by Rome.

During seventh century Arabia, female infanticide was commonplace. Muhammad abolished it. A saying in the Hadith (the collection of sayings of Muhammad) records that Muhammad said that the birth of a girl was a “blessing.” Women in Arabia at that time were essentially considered property and had absolutely no civil rights. Muhammad gave them the right to own property and they were extended very important marital and inheritance rights.

Taken at face value, a fine act of reformation. Today, 13 centuries later, Muslims still treat women in the same Bedouin manner, women are chattel. So while the infanticide may have been stopped, the basic culture which practices female subjugation has continued.

Prior to Muhammad, the dowry paid by a man for his bride was given to her father as part of the contract between the two men. Women had no say in the matter. Muhammad declared that women needed to assent to the marriage and that the dowry should go to the bride, not the father; furthermore, she could keep the dowry even after marriage. The wife did not have to use the dowry for family expenses. That was the responsibility of the man. Women were also given the right to divorce their husbands, something unprecedented at that time. In a divorce, the woman was empowered to take the dowry with her.

There is a large a gap between what the prophet has instructed and what the behavior is.

Women were extended inheritance rights as well. They were only given half as much as their brothers because the men had more financial responsibilities for family expenses, but with Muhammad, women became inheritors of property and family assets for the first time in Arabia. At the time, this was considered revolutionary.

There is a large a gap between what the prophet has instructed and what the behavior is.

Muhammad himself was often seen doing “women’s work” around the house and was very attentive to his family. His first marriage to Khadija was monogamous for the entire 15 years they were married, something rare in Arabia at that time. By all accounts, they were deeply in love and Khadija in fact was the first convert to Islam. She encouraged Muhammad from his very first encounter with the angel Gabriel and the recitation of the first suras that were to become the Quran.

This is not unlike similar instances in the Bible.

After Khadija’s death, Muhammad married 12 wives. One was Aisha, the daughter of his closest friend and ally Abu Baker. The rest were nearly all widows, divorced women, or captives. He preached consistently that it was the responsibility of men to protect those women who had met with misfortune. This was one of the reasons polygamy was encouraged. Even with female infanticide, women in seventh century Arabia far outnumbered men because so many men were killed in the inter-tribal warfare of the day. Several of Muhammad’s wives were poor and destitute and he took them in, along with their children, into his household.

As a grown man of over 50 years old, Muhammad married a six year old girl. The feminist in him kept him from consummating until she was nine years old.

In his Farewell Sermon delivered shortly before he died in 632, Muhammad said to the men, “You have certain rights over women but they have certain rights over you.” Women, he said, are your “partners and helpers.” In one of the sayings of the Hadith, Muhammad says, “The best men are those who are best to their wives.”

Again, there is a large a gap between what the prophet has instructed and what the behavior is.

His wife Aisha took a leadership role after his death in bringing together the Hadith and another wife played a leading role in gathering together the suras that comprise the Quran. Each of the 114 suras that comprise the Quran with the exception of sura 9 begin with the words Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim. Translated most commonly as “In the Name of God, all compassionate, all merciful,” the deeper meaning of this phrase is “In the Name of the One who births compassion and mercy from the womb.” This invocation of the feminine aspect of Allah is key to an Islamic Renaissance.

What happened after the prophets death has no bearing on who he was as a man. Sorry, this statement carries no weight at all.

Finally, there is nothing in the Quran about women wearing the veil, the Hejab. That was certainly the custom in Arabia at that time and Muhammad’s wives wore the Hejab to designate their special status as “Mothers of the Believers,” but the only thing the Quran says directly is that women should dress “modestly.” Muhammad said the same thing to men. For him, modesty of dress was expressive of modesty of the heart. Muhammad himself, even when he was supreme leader, never wore anything more than simple white woolen attire.

And yet, burkas are required attire for many Islamic women. It can be granted that, excluding the royals, and the burkas, that man and women both dress in a manner that is both similar and modest.

So radical were Muhammad’s reforms that the status of women in Arabia and early Islam was higher than any other society in the world at that time. Women in 7th century Arabia had rights not extended to most women in the West till recent centuries over 1,000 years later. The fact that women have ended up in such a degraded position in many contemporary Arab/Muslim counties is a tragedy and needs to be rectified if the Islamic culture and civilization is to flourish again as it did during the Abbasid Caliphate from the 8th - 13th centuries when Islamic civilization was a shining light to the world. Liberating women would have profound effects politically, economically, culturally, artistically, and religiously. It would take the Arab Spring to a whole new level, which is what is so desperately needed in those countries that suffered the first Arab Spring as a stillbirth.

The teachings did not become part of the culture, sure to describe as a reform would be at best, premature.

It is time for Islam to liberate women fully and do so upon the example of Muhammad and the authority of the Quran that holds compassion and mercy as the first and foremost attributes of Allah.

Agreed.

After running through the article, I find it runs a path parallel to the liberal description of Islam being a religion of peace. Most points, I am willing to stipulate, as long as the proponents the prophet being a "feminist" stipulate that the culture Islam is one that embraces the legal framework known as Sharia, and barbaric practices like forced female circumcision.
As an aside, I would guess that to the Islamic terrorist ilk, a woman such the author Banafsheh Sayyad might be a candidate for being stoned for referring to the prophet as a feminist.  That is simply my suggestion. 
People seldom live up to the teachings of their religion. At this time in history, the tribal Bedouins are making Muhammad look like an ineffectual teacher. If you want to claim that Muhammad is a feminist, fine, but if that is your position you must accept that his followers aren't very good disciples.

Such A Nice Offer

Here I am an old man, married, and uninteresting.
Where were girls like this when I was younger.
I could put a Donald move on them.

Hillary's Skills

Have been keeping pretty quiet on the election and what side I support.
My brother shares about 20 links a day on Facebook, trying to inform people who take the Democrats statements at face value.
Citizens are entitled to a defense and what she did during the trial of this rapist was probably legal. Following a case such as this, the attitude should be that she did not like defending the man, but she did her best within the law. The attitude she did project afterword is what is disturbing. The nervous laugh, the same sick sounding cackle we heard during the Congressional hearings, shows the person at the core. She nervous, uncaring, cold, and to her enemies and the weak, she is mean spirited.
No one should doubt that at minimum Hillary Clinton is most interested in her position in in the world, and her care for other women is feigned, reaching only as far as the voting machine.
This is an example of treatment of women that should be vilified in all media.

The World According to Garp

Going back to the first time I read the book The Hotel New Hampshire, John Irving has been my favorite author. With nothing fun to read at hand one day, found an old paperback copy of The World According to Garp and decided to go for the re-read.
The World According to Garp was published in 1978, is John Irving's fourth novel and first of critical and financial acclaim.
This is story of a TS Garp, born to an independent feminist before there even was a classification of the term feminist. He grew up well nurtured by a thoughtful woman, becoming an author, and for the most part lived a lived curtailed by women.
This is a wonderful book, a must read for any adult who enjoys humor tinged with political unrest.
Buy it, steal it, read it.

Starve Government, Feed Business

Congress.org presents MEGAVOTE for September 26, 2016 and Georgia's 13th Congressional District.

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations – Cloture on Motion to Proceed
• Senate: Prohibit Sales of Military Equipment to Saudi Arabia – Motion to Table
• House: Legal Challenges to Federal Rules
• House: Identify Assets of Top Iranians
• House: Defer Taxing Stock Options for Startups
• House: Bar Ransom Payments for Hostages

Upcoming Congressional Bills

• Senate: Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations
• Senate: Veto Override of Lawsuits by U.S. Victims of International Terrorism
• House: Water Resources Development
• House: Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations

Recent Senate Votes:

Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations – Cloture on Motion to Proceed Vote Agreed to (89-7, 4 Not Voting)

The bill appropriates $3.5 billion Legislative Branch bill for fiscal 2017, which covers the operations of the House, the Capitol Police, Architect of the Capitol, Library of Congress and other agencies. The measure is expected to be the vehicle for the continuing resolution that would deal with broader veterans funding and emergency money needed to fight the spread of the Zika virus. Sixty votes were needed to invoke cloture.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES

Sen. David Perdue voted NO

Votes on deciding to talk or deliberate or whatever, bore me. Well they got the 60+ votes needed, and progress for a vehicle of little consequence.

Prohibit Sales of Military Equipment to Saudi Arabia – Motion to Table Vote Agreed to (71-27, 2 Not Voting)

The joint resolution prohibits a roughly $1 billion sale of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, including well more than a hundred Abrams tanks.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES

Sen. David Perdue voted YES

Sell them the damned tanks, the Saudis are duplicitous bastards but they are loyal because they want us to buy their oil.

Recent House Votes:

Legal Challenges to Federal Rules Vote Passed (244-180, 7 Not Voting)

The bill postpones, until all legal challenges are completed, the implementation of any new federal rule that would have an economic impact of $1 billion or more per year.

Rep. David Scott voted NO

I like the concept and how the vote went. Democrats, for the most part, love regulations the most. It affords them the opportunity to extend the power of government.

Identify Assets of Top Iranians Vote Passed (282-143, 6 Not Voting)

The bill requires the Treasury secretary to compile and submit to Congress a report detailing the known assets of Iran's top political and military leaders, how those assets were acquired and for what purposes the assets were used.

Rep. David Scott voted YES
The intent is correct, but I have little doubt that the Executive Branch will do everything it can to obstruct. 

Defer Taxing Stock Options for Startups Vote Passed (287-124, 20 Not Voting)

The bill allows employee stockholders in certain startup businesses to defer income taxes on stock options for up to seven years, when they are more likely to have the funds to make the tax payments.

Rep. David Scott voted YES

We should be pleased with our Congressman on this vote. Anything that defers or obliterates taxes is a good thing. Starve the government, feed the business.

Bar Ransom Payments for Hostages Vote Passed (254-163, 14 Not Voting)

The bill specifies that it is the policy of the U.S. government not to pay ransom or release prisoners for the purpose of securing the release of U.S. citizens taken hostage abroad, and it generally prohibits the U.S. government from providing to the government of Iran, either directly or indirectly, any cash or other promissory note. It requires the administration to obtain a Treasury foreign assets license before settling any pending financial claims with Iran, and to publicly disclose each such transaction and payment.

Rep. David Scott voted NO

Explain to me Mr. Scott, why you would vote against this. The policy is already in practice and the President has already proven that he is willing to break banking laws to pay ransom

Upcoming Votes:

Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations - HR5325 

The bill would appropriate $3.5 billion Legislative Branch bill for fiscal 2017, which covers the operations of the House, the Capitol Police, Architect of the Capitol, Library of Congress and other agencies. The measure is expected to be the vehicle for the continuing resolution that would deal with broader veterans funding and emergency money needed to fight the spread of the Zika virus.

Politicians love to spend money, after talking about it endlessly.

Veto Override of Lawsuits by U.S. Victims of International Terrorism - S2040

The measure would permit possible lawsuits by U.S. victims of international terrorism against foreign nationals, which could allow the families of 9/11 victims to sue certain Saudi citizens, including members of the royal family. The bill was vetoed by President Barack Obama on September 23, 2016.

Here is a tip, they did it, it was political grandstanding by the Congress, but they did it.

Water Resources Development - HR5303

The bill would authorize 27 new water projects for construction by the Army Corps of Engineers and would authorizes the corps to conduct feasibility studies for 29 possible projects. It also would deauthorize five existing projects and would establish an expedited process for the deauthorization of other projects that are no longer viable, and it would modify the water project selection process created by the 2014 authorization law and other elements of that law in order to clarify and strengthen its application and use.

Give them everything they ask for. This is the real shovel ready spending.

Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations - HR5325

The bill would appropriate $3.5 billion Legislative Branch bill for fiscal 2017, which covers the operations of the House, the Capitol Police, Architect of the Capitol, Library of Congress and other agencies. The measure is expected to be the vehicle for the continuing resolution that would deal with broader veterans funding and emergency money needed to fight the spread of the Zika virus.

Politicians love to spend money, after talking about it endlessly.

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Copyright (c) 2016.

Duane Allman on Wilson Pickett's "Hey Jude"

Eric Clapton's endorsement is enough for me.

A Drop in the Bucket

Congress presents the MEGAVOTE for September 21, 2016 and Georgia's 13th Congressional District.

Recent Congressional Votes

• Senate: Water Resources Development - Motion to Invoke Cloture
• Senate: Water Resources Development - Passage
• House: Health Expenses Tax Deductions
• House: Disclose Agency Rule-Making Communications
• House: Veterans Affairs Department Accountability
• House: Prohibit Guantanamo Transfers

Upcoming Congressional Bills

• Senate: Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations
• Senate: Prohibit Sales of Military Equipment to Saudi Arabia
• House: Legal Challenges to Federal Rules
• House: Identify Assets of Top Iranians
• House: Defer Taxing Stock Options for Startups
• House: Bar Ransom Payments for Hostages

Recent Senate Votes:
Water Resources Development – Motion to Invoke Cloture Vote Agreed to (94-3, 3 Not Voting)

Motion to invoke cloture (thus limiting debate) on the bill which authorizes $10.6 billion in funding for more than 30 Army Corps of Engineers water infrastructure projects under the current law (PL 113-121), including waterways and flood control systems, as well as Environmental Protection Agency drinking water infrastructure programs. The measure authorizes $220 million in recovery assistance, specifically $100 million for water infrastructure improvements available to "states with emergency drinking water situations" via state revolving fund loans; $70 million in Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act credit subsidies; and $50 million in health screening and education grants. Sixty votes are needed to invoke cloture.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES
Debate has been limited on discussion of the water resources bill. Interesting that the value of the bill is 10.6B$, bu the major items described do not amount to even 10% of that amount. Plainly speaking, 100M$ is a drop in the bucket, no pun intended. This kind of infrastructure is very expensive, any major city in the United States could spend all of that 100M$ in a year or two.

Water Resources Development - Passage Vote Passed (95-3, 2 Not Voting)

The Senate passed legislation which authorizes $10.6 billion in funding for more than 30 Army Corps of Engineers water infrastructure projects under the current law (PL 113-121), including waterways and flood control systems, as well as Environmental Protection Agency drinking water infrastructure programs. The measure also authorizes $220 million in recovery assistance, specifically $100 million for water infrastructure improvements available to "states with emergency drinking water situations" via state revolving fund loans; $70 million in Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act credit subsidies; and $50 million in health screening and education grants.

Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Sen. David Perdue voted YES
The bill includes 50M$ for health screening and education grants. 
For 50$ I can handle that, water flows down hill, freezes when it gets cold and if it's dirty don't drink it.

Recent House Votes:
Health Expenses Tax Deductions Vote Passed (261-147, 23 Not Voting)

The legislation repeals the increases in the threshold at which individuals may begin deducting unreimbursed medical expenses from their income as set by the 2010 health care law, thereby rolling the threshold back to 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income for all taxpayers and preventing the threshold from increasing to 10 percent for senior citizens. Under the measure, the medical deduction threshold reverts to 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income beginning with the current 2016 tax year.

Rep. David Scott voted Not Voting
The shit-storm that ACA has created in the insurance industry is going to be felt world wide soon enough. Interesting that my congressman backed away from a vote on this topic. Perhaps he's being a bit more analytical.

Disclose Agency Rule-Making Communications Vote Passed (250-171, 10 Not Voting)

The legislation requires each federal agency to maintain an online searchable list of its regulatory actions and all public communications it makes regarding those regulatory actions. It also prohibits agencies from soliciting support for, or promoting, its regulatory actions.

Rep. David Scott voted YES
A fine idea that in no way will affect anything in a positive manner. The government machine is in the business of creating regulations, whether they be at the behest of business or political objective. I don't see how the process can separate an agencies need to be involved in regulation development without serving as an advocate for the same.

Veterans Affairs Department Accountability Vote Passed (310-116, 5 Not Voting)

The bill expands the ability of the Veterans Affairs (VA) Department to fire or demote VA employees based on performance or misconduct, and it overhauls the VA's current disability appeals process by giving veterans the choice of three "lanes" for appeal when dissatisfied with an initial VA benefits decision. It also includes provisions to protect VA whistleblowers against retaliation by supervisors, authorizes the VA to recoup employee bonuses and relocation expenses, allows the VA to reduce Senior Executive Service (SES) employees' pensions upon conviction of certain felonies, streamlines disciplinary actions for SES employees and eliminates all bonuses for SES employees for five years.

Rep. David Scott voted YES
Has anybody gone to prison for cooking the books for the the purpose of padding statistics and obtaining bonus pay for performance that did not happen? No and nobody will.  These administrators are guilty of theft and conspiracy to commit theft.

Prohibit Guantanamo Transfers Vote Passed (244-174, 13 Not Voting)

The measure prohibits the Defense Department from transferring or releasing any detainee from the detention facility at the U.S. Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, into the United States, its territories or possessions, or to any foreign country or entity. The blanket prohibition would end on Jan. 21, 2017, or earlier once a Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 2017 is enacted.

Rep. David Scott voted YES
My congressman votes against the President. A President whom I somewhat suspect will circumvent and release some of these folks in the next three months, regardless of any law.

Upcoming Votes:
Fiscal 2017 Legislative Branch Appropriations - HR5325

The bill would appropriate $3.5 billion Legislative Branch bill for fiscal 2017, which covers the operations of the House, the Capitol Police, Architect of the Capitol, Library of Congress and other agencies. The current bill text is expected to be replaced with text containing the continuing resolution that would deal with broader veterans funding and emergency money needed to fight the spread of the Zika virus.

Zika?

Prohibit Sales of Military Equipment to Saudi Arabia - SJRes39

The joint resolution would prohibit a roughly $1 billion sale of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, including well more than a hundred Abrams tanks.

The tanks aren't the problem with Saudi Arabia, its the duplicitous sheiks who run the country. They do business with the United States, all the time fomenting religious warfare. 

Legal Challenges to Federal Rules - HR3438

The bill would postpone, until all legal challenges are completed, the implementation of any new federal rule that would have an economic impact of $1 billion or more per year.

This would be ignored, or at least skirted, all it would take is an intentional misstatement of the expect financial impact. Remember, these people are liars and the want nothing more than to run everything.

Identify Assets of Top Iranians - HR5461

The bill would require the Treasury secretary to compile and submit to Congress a report detailing the known assets of Iran's top political and military leaders, how those assets were acquired and for what purposes the assets were used.

I think a better list to keep, would be, one which lists all Iranians donating money to political candidates and organizations in the United States.

Defer Taxing Stock Options for Startups - HR5719

The bill would allow employee stockholders in certain startup businesses to defer income taxes on stock options for up to seven years, when they are more likely to have the funds to make the tax payments.

The IRS has been playing a little bit dirty on this topic, making some taxpayers pay taxes on unrealized profits.

Bar Ransom Payments for Hostages - HR5931

The bill would specify that it is the policy of the U.S. government not to pay ransom or release prisoners for the purpose of securing the release of U.S. citizens taken hostage abroad, and it generally would prohibit the U.S. government from providing to the government of Iran, either directly or indirectly, any cash or other promissory note. It would require the administration to obtain a Treasury foreign assets license before settling any pending financial claims with Iran, and to publicly disclose each such transaction and payment.

There were already laws non the books that the President and his minions ignores when making the last transfer to Iran. Who thinks that a motivated politicians is going to be limited by some silly law such as this? Not me.

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Copyright (c) 2016.